The third annual B.C. Provincial BJJ (Brazilian jiu-jitsu) Championship hit the Abbotsford Centre this past weekend with local mixed martial arts (MMA) club Genesis Martial Arts & Fitness taking several top honours.
Paige Taylor, coach and women’s U17 fighter, competed with the adults in the white belt division and delivered strong performances.
“She completely dominated positionally,” said fellow Genesis coach Jason Gagnon. Taylor won gold in the adult women’s white belt medium heavy division.
In adult mens, Clint Cooper, 25, fought in the won gold in both the Gi (wearing martial arts clothing) and non-Gi purple belt competitions.
Shawn Owen, 25, finished second in the blue belt division after a close match in the finals, while Moritz Mathis, 20, won second place in the middleweight blue belt division.
In just his second tournament competition, Jesse Raine secured three victories, all by submission in the middleweight white belt division.
Rich Vandervinne won the Gi master 1 male blue belt division in dominant fashion, according to Gagnon.
Genesis also had a strong showing in the kids’ Gi divisions, finishing in first place among all teams. Carter Cook, Brogan Bjarnason, Cade Handy, Kyle McLaughlin and Nathan Penner all won gold medals in the kids divisions.